nation, including the pacific time zone i'm lynn berry, and today we begin with dazed and confused. the man accused in friday's murderous rampage in a colorado movie theater made his first courtroom appearance on monday. nbc's jay gray reports. >> you have the right to remain silent. >> reporter: at times wild-eyed and seemingly on edge, james holmes sat before a judge, first time he's been seen publicly since his arrest. >> reporter: the face of evil for so many watching, family members of some of the victims. >> he does look fairly -- seems like demonic or something like that. >> reporter: his hair dyed bright red and pink, fitting the description from reports that he told police he was the joker just after the massacre, holmes was disengaged during the hearing, looking at times like he was struggling to stay awake. formal charges in the case will come next monday. prosecutors say a decision about the death penalty is still months away and that they'll discuss the issue with survivors and families of the victims. >> that's a very long process that impacts their lives for

years, and so they will want to have and we will want to get their input before we make any kind of a decision on that. >> reporter: at least the legal process has started. aurora's mayor says his shattered community must now figure out how to work through the tragedy emotionally. >> we've got to try to find a way to go on. if we let this guy win, then we've made a horrible mistake. >> reporter: that will be toughest for families of the deceased and the 58 injured, more than 20 still in area hospitals, including 22-year-old farah sodani. in and out of consciousness, her mom worries how it may affect her recovery when she learns about the magnitude of the attack. >> she's asked me three times, whether mouthing it or writing it, is everyone else okay. >> reporter: most here are beginning to understand it will be a long time before anything is okay. jay gray, nbc news, centennial, colorado. well, the presidential candidates are back on the campaign trail following the tragic shootings in colorado

with more calls for stricter gun control laws. mitt romney will be in nevada while president obama heads to oregon. nbc's jennifer johnson has our story from washington. >> reporter: a somber day on the campaign trail following the tragedy in colorado. at a veterans of foreign wars event in reno, president obama paid tribute to four veterans killed in aurora. >> we honor your loved ones. we salute their service. and as you summon the strength to carry on, and keep bright their legacy, we stand with you as one united american family. >> reporter: mitt romney, who discussed the economy with businesspeople in california, couldn't avoid the issue of stricter gun control laws in an interview on cnbc. >> i still believe that the second amendment is the right course to preserve and defend and don't believe that new laws are going to make a difference in this type of tragedy. >> may we pause to mourn the dead, but also honor how they lived. >> reporter: a moment of silence was held in the senate to honor

the shooting victims, and each of their names was read. >> veronica moser-sullivan. >> reporter: some members of congress are again calling for stricter gun laws, encouraging parents to push lawmakers for new rules that would stop individuals from buying massive quantities of ammunition and weapons as james holmes did. >> we have to do something about it. there's no reason in the united states of america, the land of the free, that people have to be afraid go to the movies. >> reporter: historically presidential candidates have been reluctant to take on gun control as a major campaign issue. it appears that will hold true in this campaign. jennifer johnson, nbc news, washington. well, elsewhere, sally ride, who blazed the trail as the first american woman to fly in space, died yesterday at her san diego home after a 17-month battle with pancreatic cancer. dr. ride, a physicist, was accepted into the space program in 1978 after answering an ad for astronauts.

in 1983 at the age of 32 ride also became the youngest american in space during her first mission aboard the space shuttle "challenger." ride flew a second "challenger" mission the following year and later made it her mission to inspire young people, especially girls, to do well in math and science. sally ride was 61 years old. and now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. in new jersey there was drama at a car wash after an elderly woman apparently hit the gas instead of the brakes, lost control of her car, and then drove right into the river. well, the car wash workers rushed to help, jumping in the water and pulling the woman out through the window because the water pressure blocked the doors from being open. the victim is calling those car wash attendants heroes. in utah, police were surrounded and stunned by this

accident. they say a 16-year-old girl crashed her mother's car. it wound up plunging down an embankment, slamming into the patio of an office building at about a 45-degree angle. amazingly the girl at the wheel walked away with only a sprained ankle. in northern california, amazing and beautiful images from a lightning storm in sacramento. fire officials reported more than 2,000 lightning strikes, some of which caused a number of small fires in the area. now a look at national and regional weather. here is nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. crazy weather going on there. >> i love the long exposure shots. gorgeous like that. arizona yesterday. there were thunderstorms and gusty winds and it caused this haboob in downtown phoenix. a duststorm warning. a technological term for it, and

it's fun to say. gusty winds, low visibility, and a lot of cleanup done today in arizona. it gets really dark in a hurry. as far as what we're dealing with this morning, showers and storms. knot of flagstaff, a good deal of rain by the grand canyon. phoenix dry, and showers and storms of the northeast of town are starting to dry up. big storm in canada continue tosses crank just north of the idaho and montana border. still drawing in some coolish type air, but in for a warmup as that storm begins to exit. high pressure builds in. 55 in seattle to start the morning. up in the higher terrain. in the 40s in the northern portions of the rockies. cool 58 in san francisco with the onshore flow. and inland areas nice and warming up. as evidenced by medford and on the cooler side and another chance of storms in

stormy weather yesterday. and san diego, not bad at 74, and storms around flagstaff. forecast for your wednesday coming up. >> thank you so much. coming up, oil slides, apple on deck, and age old debate. which wardrobe choices are inappropriate for the workplace. and the diva american idol found to replace the outgoing one. two new york teams, two huge trades, and the ncaa comes down hard on penn state. you're watching "early today."

good morning and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry, and here are some of your top headlines this morning. the government of syrian president bashir al assad says it could use chemical weapons in response to what was called

external aggression. president obama countered with a warning, saying assad would be held accountable if he made the, quote, tragic mistake of using chemical weapons. navy investigators say a civilian laborer set the fire that caused $400 million in damage to a nuclear-powered submarine this spring. officials say the worker set the fire because he had anxiety and wanted to get out of work early. brad pitt and angelina jolie named as victims of the news corp phone contacting scandal. and as a rule, no one really kisses queen elizabeth. but a couple did just that yesterday. turns out, though, that because it was the king and queen of greece, related to prince philip, they are allowed to kiss

the queen. and now here is an early look at how wall street's going to kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,721 after falling 101 points yesterday. the s&p sank 12. the nasdaq tumbled 35. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo the nikkei was down 20 points, while in hong kong the hang seng skidded 150. renewed worries that spain may need a bailout sent global markets skidding monday. as spain's borrowing costs soared, safety seekers pushed bond yields to record lows. more bad news came after the bell when moody's lowered the outlook of germany's aaa rating to negative from stable. the global selloff also hit commodities. oil prices slid 4%, settling just above $88 a barrel. global woes are also taking a toll on mcdonald's. the nation's largest hamburger chain posted lower than expected profit and fell short of most expectations for both net income and revenue.

elsewhere on the earnings front, texas instruments slid in late trade after a disappointing report. keep an eye on apple today. it delivers earnings after the bell. cisco is cutting back with plans to lay off 1,300 employees or 2% of its work force. peets coffee & tea shot up after striking a deal to be acquired by a german company for $1 billion. toys made by jim henson's company will not be popping up in kids' meals at chick-fil-a. the company severed ties with the fast food chain after its ceo's recent remarks against same-sex marriage, saying the company preferred the, quote, biblical definition of family unit. and it's that time of year again. what not to wear in the summer. the usual offenders, strapless tops and flip-flops topped this year's survey of this year's work no-nos, and 65% say leave your hoodies at home as well. well, coming up, the nats

take it to extras, the phils rally late, and hockey's rangers deal for an all-star. plus, a surprise trade puts a japanese icon in pinstripes. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. while many of us will dodge thunderstorms today, the big question is when. will kansas ever cool off. your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

well, good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." and in sports the ncaa sanctions handed down yesterday against penn state for the football program's recent child sex abuse scandal may not include the so-called death penalty, but there is little doubt nittany lion football will never be the same. here's nbc's mario solis with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. a day after penn state took down the joe paterno statue, the ncaa dropped the hammer on the school's football program. hitting the once proud university with a record $60 million fine, a four-year bowl ban, and the loss of 20 football scholarships each season for the next four years. the team will also vacate all their wins from 1998 to 2011, dropping coach paterno from first on the all-time wins list to number 12. the sanctions will likely cripple penn state football for

the next decade. much happier times for new york fans, the rangers pulled off a huge trade, sending three players and a first round pick to the blue jackets for rick nash. the five-time all-star had 30 goals last season in columbus. and the yankees got this guy, ichero suzuki. he didn't have to go far to join his new team, just walked across the field to the visitors' dugout. the yanks were in seattle to play the mariners. ichero is having a down year, but he did single in his first at-bat, and he can still do this. his 16th stolen base of the season. alex rodriguez, also a former mariner, launching a solo shot in the eighth, yanks get ichero and a win, 4-1. braves are also wheeling and dealing, according to reports. they're close to acquiring cubs' pitcher ryan dempster. they could have used him last night. emilio bonifacio with his first homer of the year, miami wins this one, 2-1. >> phillies rallied from three runs down in the ninth to beat the brewers. ty wigginton completing the comeback with the always

exciting sac fly. the throw to the plate not even close. phils walk off with a 7-6 win. mets and nats pick it up in the tenth. tied at 2-2 when washington bats come alive. sacks full for bryce harper, his third rbi of the game giving the nationals the lead. michael morris caps off a huge inning with a shot to deep center. nats score a half dozen in the tenth and win this one, 8-2. and that's your look at sports on "early today." i'm mario solis. well, the numbers are in for "the dark knight rises." your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, a texas town that is for the birds as in alfred hitchcock. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this tuesday morning. forecast, fairly simple throughout the west as you head out the door this morning. we'll watch for another chance of showers and storms around phoenix. numerous storms north of flagstaff this morning and salt lake city. slowly warm you up in the northeast after a couple chilly days. 73 in seattle and by tomorrow, much of washington state should head to the midder 70s, and 80s in oregon. finally on the right side of things. kgw, news channel 8 in portland, oregon, from underwater to the tree tops above, learn about diverse tropical animals at fragile forests at the oregon zoo. that's your pacific event of the day. >> bill, thanks so much. and now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in

entertainment. well, unfortunately it will forever be associated with tragedy, but "the dark knight rises" has also earned a spot on the all-time blockbusters. the film earned a mammoth $160 million in its opening weekend. that is the third best debut of all time and the best ever for a 2-d movie. now, it made $30 million at midnight screenings, the second best total ever. but the movie's business suddenly fell off 41% saturday. you can presume that that was the effects of the shooting. but this is some good news. warner brothers announced it's going to make a donation to charity, supporting victims of the aurora shooting. >> and, finally, mariah carey will be joining "american idol" as a judge next season, filling the female diva slot of jennifer lopez for reportedly the same salary lopez started with, $12 million a year.

some reports say it was a little more -- >> mariah kind of soft spoken. >> maybe a whole other side will come out. and this comes to us from kxan news from austin, texas, where at sunset the skies are filled with wings. hundreds of thousands of purple martin birds have descended on an area near a shopping mall there. bird watchers are having a field day, taking in the spectacle. but if you want a bird's-eye view of your own, you're going to have to hurry. they're only expected to stick around for another week or so, and then they're going to resume their migration, which started in pennsylvania and will eventually take them to brazil. i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station.

well, china figured out how to cool off during this hot summer. over 80,000 cubic feet of ice sculptures are on display for tourists. the ice is carved into penguins, fairies, and even a giant slide that is over 300 feet long. and to escape the heat, some even duck into the ice bar for a little cocktail in the cold, and luckily there's a little heat thrown in there too. well, in denmark, finally some clues as to what santa does in the off-season. over 100 professional st. nicks from across the globe gathered for the world santa claus congress. a little fun in the sun. meeting every year since 1977, the santa clauses socialize and discuss important issues

concerning their trade. and, finally, in romania, there is an unlikely competition brewing. a chicken has taken on the role of caretaker to a litter of kittens, even though the mother is still around. anytime the mom leaves, the chicken then steps in, even covering the kittens with her wing overnight. seemingly jealous, the hen will even peck at the adult cat. and the winner seems to be the kittens. they now have two good moms. can't lose then. >> that chicken is like the mother-in-law. >> wow. >> i'm just making a general statement. >> good save. it's time for now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day on nbc. monsignor william lynn, convicted for his mishandling of abuse claims, faces up to seven years in prison for his role in the felony child endangerment. lynn was convicted of covering up allegations often by transferring priests to unsuspecting parishes. >> the mayor of scranton, pennsylvania, will find out

whether he faces contempt charges for not following the judge's order to pay city workers their full salaries. city unions successfully challenged it, but he says the city has no money to follow the judge's orders. and jennifer lopez turns 43. all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and more as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. hear an inspiring story of courage and survival about two best friends caught in the middle of the colorado shooting. and the report of the olympic swimmer ryan lochte will be going for the gold, aiming to beat michael phelps in london. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports, and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station. have a good one.

>> reporter: president obama spends one last night in the bay area before heading out from sfo this morning. i'm christie smith. coming up i'll tell you how the fund-raisers went and what's next. >> plus, an unsettling court appearance for the suspect in the colorado shooting spree. what is next for james holmes. >> a south bay family torn apart by immigration laws. how a community is rallying around them to help. >> a live look outside on this tuesday morning, beautiful bay bridge. all aglow. this is "today in the bay."